Trump is a bad advocate for American values

March 1, 2019 — 12.00am

The US has traditionally exercised influence around the world not just by its wealth and power but by its claim to moral leadership. Yet it is a claim that President Donald Trump has all but abandoned in the past two days.

President Donald Trump has dinner with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.Credit:AP

Even though in the interests of realpolitik the US has occasionally embraced bad regimes from Saudi Arabia to South America it has always at least paid lip service to human rights and the rule of law. Yet Mr Trump has not even pretended to care about the North Korean leader's record at the failed meeting in Vietnam.

Mr Kim, who likely ordered the murder by VX nerve-gas of his half brother in 2017 and is described by Human Rights Watch as one of the world's most repressive leaders, has been feted with conviviality and attention that some leaders of the democratic world including our own Prime Minister Scott Morrison must envy.

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Mr Kim rightly described the scenes of him sitting with the US president sharing a meal and being called a "friend" as like a "fantasy movie." Mr Trump has demeaned the US and it appears he secured nothing in return. The meeting ended without even a joint statement.

Flick the channel to the congressional hearings in Washington and Mr Cohen was casting even deeper doubt on the president's moral judgment.

The event was something of a political hit job and Mr Cohen is far from an ideal witness, having pleaded guilty to fraud and other crimes uncovered by special prosecutor Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian influence in the 2016 US election. His accusations and some of the bitter epithets he threw at his former boss should be viewed with great scepticism.

But it will be hard for Mr Trump to shake off what he said. Mr Cohen gave his first public account of how Mr Trump had him pay hush money to adult film star Stormy Daniels in 2016 to conceal their relationship in the lead-up to the presidential election. Mr Cohen produced the cheques Mr Trump and family personally signed, possibly in breach of campaign finance laws.

Mr Cohen had no smoking gun to confirm that Mr Trump conspired with the Russians to steal the 2016 election but he plausibly suggested Mr Trump lied about his links to the Russians in that period. He asserted Mr Trump was negotiating a multimillion-dollar deal in Moscow long after the time he told the US people and Mr Mueller he had dropped the idea.

Mr Cohen also hinted that he is co-operating with investigations into a number of other matters involving Mr Trump.

US presidents used in the past to encourage other countries to pursue the rule of law and fight corruption. America for instance is pushing China to stop intellectual property theft. But a president under constant investigation for these crimes of dishonesty will not make a very plausible advocate.

The Herald's editor Lisa Davies writes a weekly newsletter exclusively for subscribers. To have it delivered to your inbox, please sign up here